• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권6호
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• pp.3625-3630
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• 2013

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are known to promote mesothelial carcinogenesis that is closely associated with asbestos fibers and inflammation. Epithelial to mesenchymal cell transition (EMT) is an important process involved in the progression of tumors, providing cancer cells with aggressiveness. The present study was performed to determine if EMT is induced by $H_2O_2$ in human malignant mesothelioma (HMM) cells. Cultured HMM cells were treated with $H_2O_2$, followed by measuring expression levels of EMT-related genes and proteins. Immunohistochemically, TWIST1 expression was confined to sarcomatous cells in HMM tissues, but not in epithelioid cells. Treatment of HMM cells with $H_2O_2$ promoted EMT, as indicated by increased expression levels of vimentin, SLUG and TWIST1, and decreased E-cadherin expression. Expression of stemness genes such as OCT4, SOX2 and NANOG was also significantly increased by treatment of HMM cells with $H_2O_2$. Alteration of these genes was mediated via activation of hypoxia inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-$1{\alpha}$) and transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-${\beta}1$). Considering that treatment with $H_2O_2$ results in excess ROS, the present study suggests that oxidative stress may play a critical role in HMM carcinogenesis by promoting EMT processes and enhancing the expression of stemness genes.

• 한국환경복원기술학회지
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• 제10권6호
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• pp.70-80
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• 2007

This study was surveyed from January to september, 2007 in order to evaluate the function of coastal wetland as a ecological axis in korea peninsula. Assessment was done by RAM (Rapid Assessment Method). RAM is consisted of total 8 contents and divided into high, moderate, low. The preservation grade of RAM is divided into 4 grades; absolute preservation, preservation, improvement and improvement or restoration. Throughout survey on total 14 wetlands of marine, estuary wetland and back marsh which are distributed in west coast in chung-nam province, their function was assessed. As result, total all the 14 wetlands were judged as preservation grade by assessment of 8 functional contents. The function of wetlands assessed as preservation grade showed high in water quality protection and improvement. Also, showed high in vegetation diversity, wildlife habitat and aesthetic recreation. Meanwhile, showed low in ground water recharge, Shoreline/Stream Bank Protection, Flood/Stormwater storage and Flood flow alteration. Of wetlands evaluated as preservation grade, Dae-ho, Sinduri, Bu-Nam lake, Sowhang dune and keum river estuary were assessed as absolute preservative area owing to habitation of international protection species and endangered species. These wetlands are essential to be managed continuously as a area having high ecological value. Farther, this wetlands will be done as a axis of ecological network related to land ecosystem.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제44권5호
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• pp.747-755
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• 2020

Background: Ginsenosides accumulation responses to temperature are critical to quality formation in cold-dependent American ginseng. However, the studies on cold requirement mechanism relevant to ginsenosides have been limited in this species. Methods: Two experiments were carried out: one was a multivariate linear regression analysis between the ginsenosides accumulation and the environmental conditions of American ginseng from different sites of China and the other was a synchronous determination of ginsenosides accumulation, overall DNA methylation, and relative gene expression in different tissues during different developmental stages of American ginseng after experiencing different cold exposure duration treatments. Results: Results showed that the variation of the contents as well as the yields of total and individual ginsenosides Rg1, Re, and Rb1 in the roots were closely associated with environmental temperature conditions which implied that the cold environment plays a decisive role in the ginsenoside accumulation of American ginseng. Further results showed that there is a cyclically reversible dynamism between methylation and demethylation of DNA in the perennial American ginseng in response to temperature seasonality. And sufficient cold exposure duration in winter caused sufficient DNA demethylation in tender leaves in early spring and then accompanied the high expression of flowering gene PqFT in flowering stages and ginsenosides biosynthesis gene PqDDS in green berry stages successively, and finally, maximum ginsenosides accumulation occurred in the roots of American ginseng. Conclusion: We, therefore, hypothesized that cold-induced DNA methylation changes might regulate relative gene expression involving both plant development and plant secondary metabolites in such cold-dependent perennial plant species.

• 식품저장과 가공산업
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• 제7권1호
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• pp.9-18
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• 2008

The health benefits of garlic (Allium sativum L.) are derived from a wide variety of components and from the different ways it is administered. The known health benefits of garlic include cardiovascular protective effects, stimulation of immune function, reduction of blood glucose level, protection against microbial, viral and fungal infections, as well as anticancer effects. In the present study, it was examined the effects of water extract of A. sativum (WEAS) on the growth of cultured human tumor cells in order to investigate its anti-proliferative mechanism. Treatment of WEAS to tumor cells resulted in the growth inhibition, especially in leukemia cells, which was associated with induction of G2/M arrest of the cell cycle and apoptosis. In order to further explore the critical events leading to apoptosis in WEAS-treated U937 human leukemia cells, the following effects of WEAS on components of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway were examined: generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), alteration of the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and the expression changes of Bcl-2 and IAP family proteins. The cytotoxic effect of WEAS was mediated by its induction of apoptosis as characterized by the occurrence of DNA ladders, apoptotic bodies and chromosome condensation in U937 cells. The WEAS-induced apoptosis in U937 cells was correlated with the generation of intracellular ROS, collapse of MMP, activation of caspase-3 and down-regulation of anti-apoptotic proteins. The quenching of ROS generation with antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine conferred significant protection against WEAS-elicited ROS generation, caspase-3 activation, G2/M arrest and apoptosis. In conclusion, the present study reveals that the cellular ROS generation plays a pivotal role in the initiation of WEAS-triggered apoptotic death in U937 cells.

• 한국응용약물학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국응용약물학회 1994년도 춘계학술대회 and 제3회 신약개발 연구발표회
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• pp.337-337
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• 1994

Phenol, acetaminophen(AA) and salicylamide are all known to be sulfated in rats and mioe. We have previously demonstrated that capacity-limited sulfation of xenobiotics in rats is due to the reduced availability of hepatic PAPS, the co-substrate for sulfation, which in turn is limited by the availability of its precursor, inorganic sulfate. Because species differences have been reported in the extent of sulfation, this study was conducted to determine whether these xenobiotics lower hepatic PAPS and sulfate in ICR mice. All three substrates decreased serum sulfate concentrations in a dose-and time-dependent manner. However. contrary to the observations in rats, phenol markedly increased hepatic PAPS concentraions in a dose-dependent manner, 1 hr after ip injection of 0-4 mmol/kg. Following ip injection of 2 or4 mmol/kg phenol, hepatic PAPS concentraions were enhanced 2-3 fold, 0.52 hr arter dosing and returned to control values 3 hr after dosing, whereas AA and salicylamide had little effect on hepatic PAPS concentrations. In summary. these studies demonstrate that phenol markedly enhances hepatic PAPS concentrations in mice, whereas hepatic PAPS levels are not affected by AA and salicylamide. Our data suggest that 1) hepatic sulfation for high dosages of xenobiotics in ICR mice is not limiod by the availability of co-substrate, and 2) there are significant species differences in the regulation of PAPS between rats and mice.

• 대한의생명과학회지
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• 제19권2호
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• pp.98-104
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• 2013

Radiation is one of the major therapy for the removal of cancer cells. The results of the radiation therapy depend on the radio-resistance of cancer cells. For the effective treatment in these radio-resistant cancers, the use of chemicals that act on cancer cells is known to enhance the cytotoxic effects of radiation therapy. In this study, I investigated the effect of potassium cyanate (KCN) on the irradiated-colorectal cancer cell line, HCT 116 cells. KCN induces the carbamylation of proteins and can change the biological activity of various human cells. To understand the effect of KCN on the radiosensitivity of HCT 116 cells, I examined alteration of the cell cycle, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), cell viability, apoptosis and intracellular signaling proteins in the irradiated cells with/without KCN treatment. Combination treatment caused significant increase in sub $G_0/G_1$ and ROS generation in HCT 116 cells. KCN inhibited the proliferation and cell viability in irradiated HCT 116 cells. KCN-induced apoptosis of irradiated cells was processed via the activation of caspase 3 and caspase 9. Apoptosis-associated signal proteins, including Bax and Bcl-2 were regulated by irradiation with KCN treatment. Taken together, these results may indicate that KCN enhances the radiosensitivity of radio-resistant cell and then has a synergistic effect on radiation therapy in colorectal cancer.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제29권8호
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• pp.1510-1518
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• 2008

Results of intrinsic and extrinsic fluorescence studies on choline oxidase revealed that the enzyme at high alkaline pH values has more accessible hydrophobic patches relative to acidic pH. Fluorescence quenching studies with acrylamide confirm these changes. The quenching constants were also determined at different pH(s) by using the Stern-Volmer equation. CD studies showed that at higher pH a transition from $\alpha$-helix to $\beta$- structure was appeared while at lower pH the content of $\alpha$-helix structure was increased. Furthermore, analysis of the spectral data using chemometric method gave evidence for existence of intermediate components at very high pH(s). Results of thermal denaturation evaluated that the enzyme has the most instability at higher pH(s). Altogether low and high pH values caused significant alteration on secondary and tertiary structures of choline oxidase via inducing of an intermediate.

• 한국환경보건학회지
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• 제35권5호
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• pp.343-354
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• 2009

Since Barker found associations between low birth weight and several chronic diseases later in life, the hypothesis of fetal origins of adult disease (aka, Barker Hypothesis) and epigenetics have been emerging as a new paradigm for geneenvironment interaction of chronic disease. Epigenetics is the study of heritable changes in gene silencing that occur without any change in DNA sequence. Gene expression can be regulated by several epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation and histone modifications, which may be associated with chronic conditions, such as cancers, cardiovascular disease, and type-2 diabetes. One carbon metabolism which involves the transfer of a methyl group catalyzed by DNA methyltransferase is an important mechanism by which DNA methylation occurs in promoter regions and/or repetitive elements of the genome. Environmental factors may induce epigenetic modification through production of reactive oxygen species, alteration of methyltransferase activity, and/or interference with methyl donors. In this review, we introduce recent studies of epigenetic modification and environmental factors, such as heavy metals, environmental hormones, air pollution, diet and psychosocial stress. We also discuss epigenetic perspectives of early life environmental exposure and late life disease occurrence.

• 대한한의학회지
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• 제31권6호
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• pp.1-7
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• 2010

Objectives: This study was aimed to investigate the effects of Galhwahyejung-tang (GHT) on alcohol-induced oxidative stress in rat model. Methods: Twenty SD rats were orally administrated with 40% ethanol (mL/kg) combined with GHT (50, 100, 200mg/kg) or distilled water for 2 weeks. Biochemistry in blood, malondialdehyde (MDA), total reactive oxygen species (ROS), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in serum, liver, brain, and kidney were determined. Results: GHT treatment significantly ameliorated the alcohol-induced alteration of hepatic enzyme; especially AST and ALT. GHT treatment also ameliorated the increase of MDA in liver, ROS level in serum and brain. GHT treatment reduced the depletion of antioxidant capacity in serum and brain. Conclusion: These results that GHT has antioxidant properties explaining the relevance of clinical application and its partial mechanisms of GHT.

• 대한의생명과학회지
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• 제17권3호
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• pp.177-184
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• 2011

Potassium cyanate (KOCN) is an inorganic compound and induces the carbamylation of proteins with cytotoxic effects on human cells. Although there is a potential cytotoxic molecule, the role of KOCN on the apoptosis of cancer cell is not well understood. The present study investigated the effects of KOCN on the human colorectal cancer cell line, HCT 116 cells. To understand the anti-cancer effect of KOCN on HCT 116 cells, we examined alteration of apoptosis, the intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration, the intracellular signaling pathway and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in these cells treated with KOCN. The apoptosis of HCT 116 cells was induced by KOCN in a dose-dependent manner at 24 hours and 48 hours, respectively. The apoptosis was processed via the cleavage of poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and activation of caspase 3 in HCT 116 cells. KOCN induced the elevation of intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration and changed the expressions of Bcl-2 family proteins. The pro-apoptotic Bax was continuously up-regulated, and the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 was down-regulated by KOCN. KOCN also induced the hyperpolarization of mitochondria and the generation of ROS in HCT 116 cells. Taken together, these results indicate that KOCN induces the apoptosis of HCT 116 cells by disruption of $Ca^{2+}$ homeostasis and via mitochondrial pathway. This study provides the compound that may be used as a potent agent for the treatment of colorectal cancer.